Kids These Days....

[John81]

When I had to ride a bus for school we were pretty well behaved. We knew the bus driver could, and would, stop the bus and take action if anyone got out of hand. He had the authority to use physical measures and to assign seating on the bus.

 

While I understand the idea behind bussing for the lost, it really needs to be reorganized. The assembling of ourselves together is primarily for just that, an assembling of OURSELVES; and this for the purpose of mutual edification in Christ, fellowship and worship. This often can't take place with a bunch of lost ones in the midst, and especially when the lost outnumber and dominate a classroom.

 

If there is the desire to bus the lost in hoping to bring them to salvation in Christ, they need their own classrooms with teachers specifically called and gifted to handle them and share the Gospel. In many cases there would be a need for extra classroom helpers to help keep the children/youth in line and focused.

 

In many cases, what has happened to those churches that became "seeker friendly" happens to Sunday school programs that find themselves accommodating to the ways, needs and even desires of the bussed in lost ones. All this to the harm of the Christian children and other "church kids".

 

When I was a youth I had a foul mouth, but I NEVER cussed at my parents and I don't think my parents have ever heard a cuss word come from my mouth. I also never cussed in front of any other adults. I wouldn't even cuss in front of girls unless they were foul mouthed themselves. Yet today it seems not only youth but even young children go around using the F-word, along with all the other cuss words, as if that's normal speech and it doesn't matter who is around. I really hate hearing children walking down the street and every sentence is filled with "cuss, cuss, cuss".

 

I do believe the mainstreaming of rap and hip-hop has had a major impact in this along with parents not only allowing their children to listen to the vile "music" but buying it for them. Unfortunately, this is even a prOBlem in some Christian families.

 

I'm called "mean" by some folks because I don't allow my children to listen to such, or to watch whatever TV or movies that are out there. Yet I also get a lot of compliments from folks who notice how polite my children are, well mannered and decent of speech.

[Arbo]

I bet most of you were little angels when you were children. 

[ASongOfDegrees]

My mom tried driving a bus for two years. She discovered we had been much better behaved children than she used to think! : lol:

When I rode the bus we had some really bad characters. There would be knock-down, drag out fights on the bus all the time yet I don't recall anyone ever getting booted off the bus. Seats would be all torn up and graffiti on them. Kids would throw things at the bus driver and out the window. The bus was overcrowded with kids standing for the whole trip. Our one bus driver actually backed over a child and killed her.  Yet on my bus I've had kids kicked off the bus for not sitting down when I told them to. I guess it depends on the school and how they back the drivers. There are some things allowed in the school system I drive for that I find shocking but as far as the buses they do a pretty good jOB of discipline. 

[John81]

I was far from a perfect child, but I did respect my parents, I did know that if I stepped over the line a whooping was coming, I did show respect to adults, I didn't cuss in front of my parents or other adults and never would have even considered cussing any out.

 

Being in a fallen world and also lost, I did and said things that were wrong, sinful. I got in trouble and I got punished.

 

However, as mentioned above, there were a lot of limitations to such and many youth today not only don't have those limitations, they do what they can to press beyond the few that might be around.

 

It's rather common today for children and youth to booze it up, do drugs, steal, get pregnant (or impregnate a girl) at young ages, shack up, and generally flaunt the law and parental authority.

 

While I was thrilled with whatever presents I received, whether birthday or whatever, so many of todays children/youth are demanding and have a literal fit if they don't get what they want. Most of the children and youth I see today have more stuff now than what I did when I first lived on my own and yet they don't appreciate it and demand even more.

 

Part of the prOBlem, which makes matters so much worse, is the lack of concern regarding God, or even an understanding or concept of God.

 

Some older teachers I know speak of how when they first started teaching virtually all the young students knew Christmas was about the birth of Jesus. Today they say nearly the whole class thinks Christmas is all about Santa Claus and presents, with only 2 or 3 students who will speak up and say it's about the birth of Jesus.

 

Myself and many of the children I went to school with grew up attending Sunday school. While I don't think any of us were saved during that time (I know I wasn't, I never even heard the Gospel when I attended Sunday school), we at least had the benefit of being taught there was a God, that he loved us and expected us to live a certain way. That impacted my thinking, speaking and actions for the better and laid a groundwork for when I did finally hear the Gospel right after I turned 18.

[candlelight]

One of the best things that happened to me was when I got my retirement from the Cleveland Municipal School District.  My boss encouraged me to apply for it b/c she said the district would get much worse in the future.  She was right.  She went from being a principal to working in the board of education building downtown, b/c of the stress.

I saw just about everything.  One word messed up the school district and that was "busing."  The CMSD used to be the premier school district in the nation and was known all over the world as an excellent school district, until 1982 when they started busing.  The gifted program was started in the CMSD.  Canadians would send their children to Cleveland, OH to stay with relatives to get a great education.  My great aunt was a principal in the district, and retired in the 1960's.  I remember he speaking very highly of the school system.

I had to put on my combat boots to go teach everyday.  LOL!  The bus drivers were going out of their minds with the misbehaved children on the buses.  Students would open the locked back door of the buses and jump out onto the highway.

When I married my husband in 2000, he was the Sunday School Superintendent, at my church, and also did VBS, in the summer.  My pastor, assistant pastor, and other people in the church couldn't believe how strict I was with the kids, when I helped him with his ministry.  They loved it.  I was taught in my first two years of teaching, in the parochial school, by a nun who was principal.  She said, "Get them before they get you."  Sadly, the RCC schools are better than our Christian schools, and certainly better than our public schools.  I went to parochial school for 7th and 8th grade.  I had a tutor, in the summer, to help me catch up on what I had missed attending public school from K-6th grade.  To this day, the schools in the RCC are thriving.  The good thing about parochial school, is that if you are not a Roman Catholic, they don't force your children to take religion classes.

 

My son was raised in Montessori School from 4 years old to 2nd grade.  We put him in public school due to the fact that Montessori School is so expensive.  He got a much better education there, than he did in public school, and my hometown school district, where he attended, has always been the best public school district in the State of OH.    

[HappyChristian]

I bet most of you were little angels when you were children. 

Heh. Not me.  But I can guarantee I didn't do some of the things kids did when I taught (back in the early 80s, and in a Christian school) nor what a lot of them (in Christian school) do today...at least not during school and on school property.  

[candlelight]

Heh. Not me.  But I can guarantee I didn't do some of the things kids did when I taught (back in the early 80s, and in a Christian school) nor what a lot of them (in Christian school) do today...at least not during school and on school property.  

 

I pushed my mom's buttons on time, when I was in high school.  She slapped me good, across the face.  Her mother disciplined her like this, too. I never disrespected my mom after that.  I didn't get in trouble in school, b/c my oldest brother was always getting into trouble, and I saw what my dad did to him.  He got paddled many times.  Even though I was daddy's princess, I respected him very much.  My sister admits to this day, that she was afraid of my dad, so she never got in trouble with either of my parents.  My dad was in the military and ran the house in that fashion.  They were also from the "Greatest Generation" and didn't put up with much.  Hehe!

[ThePilgrim]

I bet most of you were little angels when you were children. 

No I was not.  But I am not a sports star or a movie star so I don't have to give a testimony as to what a useless piece of human trash I was before I was saved. 

I will just say I was too bad and leave it at that.

 

God bless,

Larry

[Anon]

I can see my kids absorbing attitudes from society.....even with punishment, my kids push the envelope more than we did as kids.

I think my kids have major attitude prOBlems but most people tell me they're great kids. Which tells you something about the "average kid" these days. Which stinks.

This is an extreme example but yesterday the pastors daughter said "p-ed off". I was like "excuse me"? (She had been talking to another student). She apologized but then several students jumped in saying "why is it even bad? It's just talking about peeing. That's not bad. What's the big deal?" I honestly didn't even argue because if the parents aren't convincing them, I sure won't. "That s--ks" is also commonly said (even heard a fellow teacher say it) and of course "cr--" which us the only one I slip up on occasionally, personally.

Anyway it is commonplace for the kids to think they are being victimized anytime they are corrected or disciplined, or anytime they have to do a challenging homework assignment. I have had two junior higher so this week just up and walk out of my class.

IFB school, too. OBviously I don't do well with classroom control. In college they teach you how to teach....but the only classroom control they taught was copious demerits. Doesn't work in real life.....

[candlelight]

My son always "pushed the envelope" too, Suzy.  However, my church always talks about how well mannered he is.  When he visited a friend's house, in high school, the parents always commented on how well behaved he was.  I taught him to respect his elders, open doors for people, and be kind to all people, especially the handicapped.  The black women in the CMSD always called it, "Good home training."  I was raised that way, and I was certainly going to raise my son that way.  He also has a high regard for pastors and the other men in the church, along with the women.  That came from training, as well.

You are doing a fantastic jOB with your boys.  Listen to what other people say.  Our children might give us a run for our money, but it is other people that notice positive things.

[No Nicolaitans]

Oh, wow. That's like a normal every day occurrence now (not paying attention)...hardly even worthy of mention. Sigh.

 

Yes ma'am...that was my intention behind sharing my "worst paddling" experience.  It shows the difference between what wasn't acceptable and what was worthy of physical punishment then (late 1970s) and how things are today with no real deterrent to bad behavior.  

 

The fear of being paddled was definitely a deterrent to bad behavior back then...especially a paddling from Mr. Brown!   

[John81]

When I was in school we all knew the principal had a paddle and would use it. As well, several of the teachers had their own paddles, often on display, and we knew they were willing to use them too.

 

On top of that, we also knew they were willing to call our parents (back when doing so meant something), so we knew if we got paddled at school our parents would know about it before we got home and we would prOBably get a whooping when we got home too.

 

A great deal of deterrence there which even kept the rowdy few from getting to rowdy.

 

There is a reason Scripture tells us to use the rod on our children and not to spare for their crying. Imagine that, God knows best! No wonder there has been such a strong fight against paddling.

[No Nicolaitans]

When I was in elementary school, it was ... "well known" ... that the principal had an electric paddle...and wasn't afraid to use it.

 

Of course it wasn't true, but we didn't know that.  It was just some story that someone had made up years before, and it got passed down year after year.  Every now and then, a kid would come back from the principal's office...claiming he got paddled with the electric paddle.  Of course, that just enforced the idea that it was real.

 

Fear of that non-existent electric paddle kept a lot of the kids in line.        

[John81]

Yep, the feared punishment doesn't even have to be real, it's the fact the kids fear what might be that does the trick.

 

My youngest niece was a real brat when she was little and would barely mind her mom and dad. However, she was a much different child if my Dad or myself was watching her because she knew we would both back our words with actions. That fear alone kept her in line.